I'm glad I kept my mood board free of any actual hats. It let me be less literal and have a bit more fun with the assignment.

The goal for the class was to create a collection of hats for a wedding party. Our first assignment was a Juliet cap, also called a cocktail hat. It's made of a buckram base, covered in taffeta an adorned a little polka dot net, faux flowers, and strawberries.

The next assignment was a turban. I love turbans! I'm not sure who this would belong to in the wedding party, maybe the eccentric aunt?

From there, we did a buckram-based headband for a flower girl. This is when I decided to really go for the dessert theme.

The hand beading is done in rainbow bugle beads--sprinkles!!!

Then the bride! This is a frame made completely of wire, then covered with tulle (to cushion the wire) and then fabric.

Lastly, the "mother of the bride" hat. The assignment was to make a fabric-covered hat with a traditional crown and shaped brim (definitely the most complex of the semester). I added a swirl of polka-dot tulle over my taffeta hat and then added strawberries on top. Yes, it's a hat that looks like a strawberry cake.

I'm very happy with how the collection turned out. The only problem is that it makes me constantly hungry for CAKE. And lots of it!

I also finished my UFO dress, aka Vogue 4011. Aren't I productive this week? I think this calls for a nap.

I'm sorry, but I NEED the first hat and my four year old desperately NEEDS the headband!! Great job! I am not a huge fan of hats, but every single hat had me saying, "Oh God" or "Wow" or "I NEED this..."

I love the thought of wearing hats (even though I don't wear them) and yours are fabulous!! It all ( the hats and that great dress) reminds me of 'I Love Lucy'. She had some wonderful hats. Great job!!

Your hats are amazing! I would totally rock that flowergirl headband every day, haha. And the dress is beautiful, the colour is lovely with pink hair :). It sort of makes me think of fifties imagined futuristic, in the best way possible.

Such clever hats! The turban is very reminiscent of "I Love Lucy"; I don't doubt that was the inspiration! I just picked up a copy of "From The Neck Up" and look forward to trying my hand at some of the millinery techniques described. Oh, and the blue dress is indeed very striking next to the hair!

How much fun are your hats? I wish I could go back to the days when hats were the norm. Not that it being optional instead of expected stops me from wearing one on occasion (freedom of choice is always good), but I love the thought of how much creativity would be represented if we were all wearing hats. Maybe I just want to be in a movie where everyone is expected to wear a hat. I'd want to wear the first one.

Dear Gertie,You look absolutly gorgeous, I m loving more and more your hair colour (did you make it darker than at the beginning?) and the lipstick you are wearing on these pictures matches perfectly.I adore your hats and especially the turban.I adore turbans! It would be wonderfull if you could put a nice turban tutorial on your blog....or in your next book!As I allready wrote you before your book is fantastic,very complete and I open it very often to check things or find ideas.I bought a lot of sewing books but your book is absolutly my favorite and most usefull one, ( I even take it with me when on holidays!)

I'm a hat fiend, so I love the hats - especially the turban! Funny that you ask who would wear it; my grandmother wore a turban-style hat for my parents' wedding back in 1967 and she made it herself. I still have it somewhere. When you suggested that perhaps it would be the eccentric aunt who wore it, I had an mental image of Angela Lansbury in "Death on the Nile" - her character wore a turban for part of that film and I'd definitely describe her as eccentric.

After WAYYYYY too much wine at our respective Christmas parties on Friday, my fella and I met up all drunk and happy. Then mister "never ever getting married ever, ever, ever" proposed about twelve times. (And he's sticking to his guns now we have sobered up).

So now we are having a real "backyard wedding" at his parent's house in April. Methinks that I'm going to need a stunning piece of headwear to go with the frock I'll need to make.

Thanks for the inspiration and the mood board - I'd better get stitching (or commissioning a hat from someone who knows what they're doing).

I want to eat your hats and I mean that in the most flattering way possible. Red check reminds me of summertime in the peach orchards with my grandmother. Perhaps that's why the turban is my favorite. You may know how to get a similar look with a hankercheif or bandana...I've attempted that before, but never got it quite the way I envisioned it. Any suggestions?

Just starting my own blog, Gertie, and am looking for followers. I apologize for using yours as a springboard for it. I think I have about zero followers at present, so I'm becoming a little desperate.

I'm new to sewing and knitting, so I'm largely winnowing information from the internet in order to get started. It's thanks to your blog, tutorials, the Knit Witch, Whipstitch, and other like-minded folks that I'm able to get started with my practice. I am thankful for that guidance. Again, sorry to "advertise" here, but I like your stuff and am attempting join the community you've fostered.

A belated comment but I can't get over how cohesive and lovely this collection is; it's perfect for the project. Amazing work. I'd love to see each worn by a real-life or fashion-spread-life wedding party!